The Second Awakening
by Leon L. Lawliet
Summary: Some quests do not end when the last evil is vanquished.  Some dreams don't end when you wake up...and sometimes they're not dreams at all.


**A/N: Do not yak at me about caps, the Wind Fish speaks in all caps. Fact.**

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><p>"Ugh…"<p>

A groan escaped his lips as he struggled to clear his vision. Not that there was much to see; everything in sight was either blue or broken, himself included. Link pulled himself out of the water into a sitting position on his log lifeboat and stared ahead vacantly.

Koholint was gone. The Nightmares were gone.

Marin was gone.

A single tear broke free from his eye as the memories came flooding back. The storm, the cottage, the beach, the owl…the entire thing replayed itself in his mind, slowing at the parts involving the girl he'd grown so fond of and the truths that took her away. She was- all of them were gone.

His reverie snapped off when the sun above him ceased to shine. He looked up into the belly of the largest fish he'd ever seen, floating in the sky above. The creator of his own dream turned nightmare once again filled his ears with a booming voice.

"_LINK, YOU HAVE MY ETERNAL GRATITUDE FOR RETURNING US TO THE WAKING WORLD. ALTHOUGH MY DREAM IS AT AN END, YOUR JOURNEYS ARE JUST BEGINNING. I ONLY REGRET THAT I COULD NOT GRANT YOUR WISHES IN RETURN, BUT…"_

The voice paused long enough to allow Link to fix its source with a puzzled look, and though it was impossible to tell, he could swear the giant was smiling.

"_IT APPEARS I DO NOT NEED TO."_

Then the sun came back in full blazing gory, forcing his eyes away. Before he had a chance to think on its comment, the Wind Fish dove, splitting the sea behind him almost instantly. The resulting wave promptly knocked him off the log.

He came up sputtering and cursing the fish as what used to be a ship drifted by. First the mast, then its base, some shreds of rope, a broken crow's nest, torn bits of sail, the mast, the-

Link shook his head violently and looked again. Two masts. Slowly, more debris came into view: a neatly shaped piece of hull, a larger piece of a sail, a rudder, and-

He nearly choked. In the middle of all the flotsam and jetsam floated the mostly-intact floor of a boat, carrying a slender girl with long orange hair and a blue dress. He paddled over to the wreckage as fast as his waterlogged body would move, arriving just as she began to stir. She turned toward the commotion, and eyes locked.

"Marin."

The name escaped despite his efforts to pull it back. That was impossible, and yet here she was, staring him in the face. She sat up slowly as he rolled onto the makeshift raft.

"…Link?" Even the voice was a perfect match, if a bit hoarse. "But…you were…"

Of course, his voice was no better. "A dream?" he finished with a slight rasp. She nodded mutely. A third voice again interrupted loudly, causing both of them to jump a little.

"_THE DREAM IS OVER. FEAR NOT, YOUR RESCUE IS COMING. HOWEVER, I HAVE NO MORE HAND IN THESE AFFAIRS. REST NOW, HEROES, FOR DESTINY IS NOT SO PATIENT."_

It took another few minutes for Link to find his voice, but he was cut off before he could speak.

"You…are Link, aren't you?" she murmured, a distinct trembling in her voice. She placed a hand on his cheek. "Please…tell me I'm not still dreaming…"

He said nothing. Instead he retrieved a small, damp ocarina from his chest pocket, placed it to his lips, and began to play. For each note, a small drop formed in the corner of her eye until they cascaded down her face at the end of the song.

Slowly, he replaced the instrument, then gave her a small smile. "Something I could never forget."

"Link!" She wrapped her arms around him as tightly as she could, burying her face in his chest. "I thought…you were gone…"

He embraced the girl as best he could, given the situation. "Yeah," he whispered, "so did I."

She stopped crying long enough to look up at him face-to-face, allowing him to wipe away any rogue tears.

"Promise me…" she mumbled.

"What?"

Marin swallowed hard and continued. "Promise me that we stay together from now on. I…I don't want you to leave…ever again."

Link grinned and pressed his lips to her forehead. "I promise."

Marin blushed profusely, but returned the smile. "You better." She lowered her head again, humming her favorite ballad, but the tune soon drifted off with its composer.

Link tried to set her down in a more comfortable position, but could not make her relinquish her grasp. He sighed and shifted until they lay together on the planks, which was really no bother at all. The sky was starting to dim, they were still stranded in the middle of the ocean, and the sea breezes could get incredibly chilly at night.

But none of that mattered. Marin was here, now, with him, and that was all that mattered.


End file.
